Woodland Road Surgery

Updated 7 February 2017

Drs Allen and Shevket (Woodland Surgery) provides primary medical care to 5,940 patients. The number of registered patients fluctuates between 5,900 and 6,100. The practice has a large boundary covering Northfield and Longbridge areas of Birmingham. The practice holds a General Medical Services (GMS) contract, a nationally agreed contract commissioned by NHS England. The practice had a slightly higher than average registered female patients aged between 40 and 54 and 85+ years or above.

The practice is managed by four GP partners (three male, one female) who are supported by three salaried GPs. There are two practice nurses who carry out reviews of patients who have long term conditions such as, diabetes. They also provide cervical screening and contraceptive advice. There is one health care assistant (HCA) who carries out duties such as, phlebotomy (taking blood), and flu vaccinations. The practice manager is assisted by a senior administrator, an apprentice secretary, two reception supervisors, three receptionists and an apprentice receptionist.

The practice employs an IT specialist twice a year to check that the correct codes have been applied to patients’ files.

The practice is a designated training practice for trainee GPs known as registrars. These are qualified doctors who are learning the role of a GP. There is one registrar working at the practice. The practice also has placements of medical students.

The practice offers a range of services for chronic disease management, diabetes, heart disease, cervical screening, contraception advice, minor surgery, injections and vaccinations.

The practice is open from 8.30am until 6pm each weekday with the exception of Wednesdays when it closes at 4pm. Between 1pm and 4pm child health clinics are held with health visitors and midwives. Prescriptions can be collected, there is a phlebotomy clinic and other reception services are available. The phone lines close at 1pm with a message to call the out of hours’ provider.

Appointments times vary between GPs:

•  From 8.30am until 10am patients can attend without an appointment and wait to be seen. Patients can request which GP they wished to be seen by.

• From 4pm until 6pm patients can attend without an appointment and wait to be seen. Patients can request which GP they wished to be seen by. All patients who arrived are seen. This service is not available on Wednesdays.

• Pre-bookable appointments are available from 8.30am until 6pm with the exception of Wednesday afternoons.

Extended hours are:

• Patients can book an appointment to be seen at another local (hub) practice every Saturday and Sunday morning. The practice has access to patient’s records to enable appropriate assessments and treatments to be given.

The practice operates a telephone system for patients who wish to hold clinical discussions or to receive a test result. Routine appointments can be pre-booked up to six weeks in advance in person, on line or by telephone.

The practice has opted out of providing GP services to patients out of hours. During these times GP services are provided currently by Badger an out of hours’ service commissioned by the NHS Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG). When the practice is closed, there is a recorded message giving out of hours’ details. The practice leaflet includes contact information and there are out of hours’ leaflets in the waiting area for patients to take away with them.

Updated 7 February 2017

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Drs Allen and Shevket (Woodland Surgery) on 7 December 2016. Overall the practice is rated as good.

Our key findings across all the areas we inspected were as follows:

• There was an open and transparent approach to safety and an effective system in place for reporting and recording significant events. Information about safety was recorded, monitored and reviewed and the results shared with staff including lessons learned.
• Risks to patients were assessed and well managed. These included staff recruitment procedures, health and safety precautions, ensuring sufficient staffing was in place to meet patient needs There was adequate medical equipment and medicines available if a patient presented with a medical emergency.
• Clinical staff assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current evidence based guidance. Staff had received role appropriate training to provide them with the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment.
• Patient feedback we reviewed showed patients were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and they were involved in their care and decisions about their treatment. National patient survey data showed that patients consistently rated the services above local and national averages.
• Information about services and how to complain was available and easy to understand. Where necessary improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints and concerns.
• All patients said they found it easy to make an appointment and there was continuity of care, with all urgent appointment requests accommodated the same day.
• The practice was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
• There was a clear leadership structure and staff told us they felt supported by management. The practice proactively sought feedback from staff and patients, which it acted on.
• The provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the duty of candour.

There was an area where the provider should make an improvement:

• Continue to identify and support carers.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Updated 7 February 2017

The practice is rated good for the care of people with long-term conditions.

• Nursing staff had lead roles in chronic disease management.

• Longer appointments and home visits were available when needed.

• Patients with long-term conditions had structured annual reviews to check that their health and medicine needs were being met. Where necessary reviews were carried out more often.

• Clinical staff worked with health and social care professionals to deliver a multidisciplinary package of care.

• Clinical staff reviewed patients within three days of their discharge from their unplanned admission to hospital and developed care plans for them.

• Where necessary patients in this population group had a personalised care plan in place and they were regularly reviewed.

Updated 7 February 2017

The practice is rated good for the care of families, children and young people.

• There were systems to identify and follow up children living in disadvantaged circumstances and who were at risk.

• Alerts were put onto the electronic record when safeguarding concerns were raised.

• Out of school hours appointments were provided. The practice operated open access (no appointment) sessions every weekday morning from 8.30am until 10am and from 4pm until 6pm each evening except Wednesdays

• By pre-bookable appointments patients could be seen at another local practice during weekend mornings. The practice had access to patient’s records to ensure they received appropriate assessments and treatments.

• Patients told us that children and young people were treated in an age-appropriate way and were recognised as individuals.

• Childhood vaccinations were above or in line with local and national averages.

Updated 7 February 2017

The practice is rated good for the care of older people.

• The practice had a higher than average older population; 18% of registered patients were aged 65 or over.

• Practice staff offered proactive, personalised care to meet the needs of older patients.

• Staff kept up to date registers of patients’ health conditions and information was held to alert staff if a patient had complex needs.

• Home visits were offered to those who were unable to access the practice and patients with enhanced needs had prompt access to appointments. Practice nurses visited these patients and carried out reviews of long term conditions and provided treatments such as wound care.

• Practice staff worked with other agencies and health providers to provide patient support.

• Older patients were offered annual health checks and where necessary, care, treatment and support arrangements were implemented.

Updated 7 February 2017

The practice is rated good for the care of working-age people (including those recently retired and students).

• Telephone consultations were available for those patients who found it difficult to attend the practice or if they were unsure whether they needed a face to face appointment.

• Online services were available for booking appointments and ordering repeat prescriptions.

• The practice recently introduced a ‘drop in’ session (no appointment needed) each Wednesday lunchtime when patients could attend for phlebotomy (taking blood).

• Health promotion advice was available and there was a full range of health promotion material available in the practice.

• Practice nurses carried out NHS health checks for patients aged between 40 and 74 years; 201 had been completed since the beginning of April 2016.

• Staff actively encouraged patients to attend for health screening, such as, breast and bowel cancer. The attendance for breast screening was above the local and national averages.

• Staff encouraged patients well in advance of the forthcoming autumn flu vaccination clinics to promote good attendance.

Updated 7 February 2017

The practice is rated good for the care of people experiencing poor mental health (including people with dementia).

• 100% of patients who experienced poor mental health had received a mental and physical health check during 2015-2016 and had been involved in developing their care plans. This was above local and national averages.

• Those patients who find it stressful to attend the practice during peak times were offered either a quiet waiting area or to be seen in between session times. Those who were unable to attend the practice were offered home visits and phlebotomy.

• There was a designated lead GP for patients who experienced poor mental health.

• Practice staff regularly worked with multi-disciplinary teams in the case management of patients who experienced poor mental health, including those with dementia.

• Referrals to other health professionals were made when necessary. For example, the mental health team. Staff also signposted patients to social care services such as; Age UK and the local authority.

• Staff had a good understanding of how to support patients with mental health needs including those with dementia.

Updated 7 February 2017

The practice is rated good for the care of people whose circumstances may make them vulnerable.

• The practice held a register of patients living in vulnerable circumstances including those who had a learning disability. All 36 patients in this group had received annual health checks.

• Practice staff regularly worked with multi-disciplinary teams in the case management of vulnerable patients.

• There was a process in place to signpost vulnerable patients to additional health and support services.

• Staff knew how to recognise signs of abuse, the actions they should take and their responsibilities regarding information sharing.

• There was a clinical lead for dealing with vulnerable adults and children.

• Vulnerable patients were referred to a local befriending/well-being service through two local providers; Health Exchange for the over 60s and Gateway for the wider population.

• The practice kept a register of the 1.2% of patients who were carers. In September 2016 a formal means of identifying carers was introduced. Clinical staff offered them guidance, signposted them to support groups and offered them flu vaccination each year.